The Conquest of the Shang

If I had to sum up my impressions after reading this book in a single phrase, it would be a renewed respect for the Duke of Zhou (Zhou Gong Dan). Cases in which one person’s enlightenment shifted the course of civilization are exceedingly rare in history. The tragedy of Bo Yikao must have come as a great shock to the entire Ji clan, yet each of them dealt with it in a different way. King Wen sought to fathom the will of the divine; King Wu submitted to the savage gods. And the Duke of Zhou killed god. Now, three thousand years after the Shang-Zhou revolution, it is clear which of these three—the father and his two sons—was right. Three thousand years from now, how will the people of the future judge them? I only hope it will not be a repetition of the tragedy.

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